{"value"=>"<p>The World's Fair site became a flashpoint for the internecine battles that were raging among labor unions in late 1930s New York. In an attempt to mitigate the effects of these struggles, the Fair Corporation established the Advisory Committee on Labor Relations, a group of influential labor leaders that included Matthew Woll, vice president of the American Federation of Labor; George Meany, then New York State Federation of Labor president; and Harry Van Arsdale of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. The Fair's Director of Transportation, Burnside Value, was appointed Fair liaison officer for labor relations. Value was assisted by Walter Hooke and John McInerny. But an April 1937 agreement with the Building and Construction Trades Council failed to prevent an onslaught of labor disputes. Between June 1937 and May 1939 there were 27 major strikes and work stoppages at the Flushing Meadow site. Serious labor issues continued to bedevil the 1939 season, one of the most vexing for the Fair Corporation regarding the status of native laborers brought in by foreign governments to work on their pavilions. Charges of sabotage and price-gouging by local unions led to vociferous protests, bad publicity and more limited government participation for the 1940 season. Harvey Gibson established the Department of Labor Relations in January 1940, with Mcinerny director and Hooke assistant director, and a period of \"labor peace\" was declared for the second season. Records include correspondence with union and government officials about the terms and conditions of agreements, reports on conditions at work sites, and newspaper clippings tracking the conflicts. The file on Strikes and Delays includes a timeline of pre-Fair disputes. More on Fair labor can be found in the files of the Legal Department: Labor Relations, box 1371, folder 3 and Central Files-Administration, A4.0 Labor, box 123, folder 1.</p>"}